The Nexus 7 charges slowly? Here is how you can fix it

Ever since I got the 4.2 update on my Nexus 7, I have been facing some minor issues with the tablet.

The biggest complaint would be the battery drain and slow charging.But last week it got worse and my Nexus 7 would charge around 4-5% in an hour or so. I tried different battery monitor apps but the first thing that I noticed was they all showed me the expected charging time to be 3 hours or more. something was not right here. Let me tell you that I am using the standard Asus Wall Charger which I got with my tablet and I tried various outlets without success.

And I am not the only person with this complaint, there are many posts at various Android forums, and blogs that prove that this is a known issue. When exactly is Google planning to fix this? I am not sure they are taking note of this, as they are busy preparing for the Google I/O.

So what exactly is the problem with the slow charging time? The answer is not a faulty hardware, rather it is a problem with the firmware. Most probably the kernel, which in turn

After a longtime of trying to fix my tablet and trying a different charger, I even went to Google Nexus 7’s page and considered getting an RMA. But I decided to try a factory reset first. Or wait, even better a custom ROM.

The solution:

I flashed a custom ROM and used the same charger and plugged it into the same outlet, and guess what? It managed to charge around 15-20% in less than half an hour. This proves that the Stock ROM and kernel is not up to the mark and is in fact quite buggy.

If you want to know how to install a custom recovery on the Nexus 7, read my post here. And if you want to know which ROM I flashed and how to do it, you may read my post here.

To install a custom recovery or flashing a ROM, you need to Root your Nexus 7 and I have a post ready to help you with that as well.

Disclaimer: Make sure you take a back up of your apps and data before trying a factory reset or flashing a new ROM.

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Originally a Business Grad, Ashwin is a natural at testing and reviewing apps and games for Windows and Android Apps, as well as flashing ROMs. A proud owner of a Google Nexus 6 and a Xiaomi Redmi Note 3, he is also an avid gamer, and loves playing on his Laptop and his phones. You can find him on Twitter @Im_Ashwin